Thursdays, 6 – 8:30 p.m. 
Instructor: Frederic Kaplan 
Four-Week Short Course (10Hours) 
Credit: Non-Credit Only 
Includes Rain Date: August 7

Learn to paint the unique effects of evening light and activity of Center City and University City, Philadelphia. Discover techniques for managing the shifting light and shadows of the setting sun as it plays across the city’s historic architecture. This plein air option is perfect for summer painting, allowing artists to take advantage of cooling evening temperatures and the subtle or dramatic palette of sunset and dusk. Previous painting experience required. Restrooms near all locations. Note: Students are responsible for their own transportation to painting locations.

Register by: July 3
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Thursdays, 6 – 9 p.m. 
Instructor: RA Friedman 
Six-Week Short Course (18 Hours) 
Credit: Non-Credit Only

For anyone seeking to advance their portrait drawing skills to the next level, this course takes a deep look at the functional and expressive anatomy of the human head including the face, neck, and shoulders. Explore head variations and how the face changes over time. Experiment with creative questions such as handling light and composition. Content includes drawing from life and working in larger formats with a wider range of media. Instruction will lay the groundwork for creative explorations that lead to professional quality work.  Tuition includes a $25 models fee.

Note: For foundational or alternative study, see Portrait Drawing: Structure and Features. Students need not enroll in both sections, and Structure and Features is not required for Expression and Likeness.

Register by: July 3
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Fridays, 9 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Instructor: James Toogood
Six-Week Condensed Course (42 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.5 Undergraduate Credits (See Below)

Enrich your knowledge of painting with an in-depth look at watercolor. Thoroughly investigate a wide range of watercolor materials and techniques from your choice of landscape, still life, portrait, and figure subjects. The course is designed to equip each participant with the knowledge and skills necessary to make accomplished, personally rewarding watercolor paintings. Open to watercolorists of all levels and to acrylic/oil painters looking to broaden their skills.

Learning Objectives

• Students will learn about color theory as applied to watercolor.

• Students will receive a comprehensive explanation of watercolor materials and tools, with particular focus will be paid to the properties of paint and pigments as they interact with the paintbrushes and paper.

• Through both discussions and demonstrations, first time participants and beginners will learn a variety of techniques that are fundamental to watercolor, presented in a systematic step by step method. Participants can expect to have regular individual instruction, given at their current skill level.

• Focus also will be paid on acquiring the skills needed to achieve a richness of color and a feeling of light.

• Participants will work from direct observations from the still life and model, or from their own source material. Those not taking the class for credit will have the option to work on landscape, still life, portrait and figure or abstraction, as they wish.

• Participants will be exposed to a variety of watercolor styles and encouraged to discover one’s own personal aesthetic.

Optional: This course is available for 1.5 undergraduate credits for $995. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering.

Register by: July 3
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Saturdays, 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. 
Instructor: David Wilson 
Six-Week Short Course (18 Hours) 
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Paint from a life model in a multi-week-pose format to develop and refine your figure painting compositions.  Extended poses will allow students to adjust and resolve issues of surface, color, and composition. Instruction will cover a variety of topics including glazing, broken color, surface texture, composition and design, the relationship of the figure to the environment, the creation of atmosphere and color harmony, disrupted realism, and open- versus closed-form painting. All levels welcome. Instruction will be geared toward oil, but students are welcome to draw-only, or use other appropriate media, if they wish. Note: Tuition includes a $35 models fee.

For preparatory or alternative study, see also Figure Painting: Alla Prima and the Limited Palette with the same instructor.  Students enrolling in one class need not enroll in the other, and Alla Prima and the Limited Palette is not required for The Extended Pose.

Register by: July 3
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Instructor: Roger Chavez
Weekend Workshop 
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Explore past techniques to inspire new ways of drawing​! Experiment with silverpoint, chalk, and conté on a variety of historical surfaces: a beautiful and easy-to-erase silverpoint surface (tafelleten); a receptive pastel surface made from volcanic ash; and a versatile ground of acrylic gesso with calcium carbonate treatment for a variety of media.  Take part in surface preparations to better understand and employ their properties, and then use them to draw from traditional subject matter such as still lifes, antique casts, and the nude figure.  Perfect for draftspeople interested in expanding their craft and anyone with a fascination for historical practices.  Tuition includes a $10 models fee.  Additionally, students should come prepared to purchase materials necessary to make the various surfaces directly from the instructor, approximately $10.

Image: Roger Chavez, Untitled Still Life #D1, 2010, traditional gesso on rag paper, 11 x 15 in.

Register by: July 13
Materials List - Coming Soon
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Instructor: Rebecca Gilbert
One-Week Intensive Course (30 Hours)
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)

Wood engraving is a relief printmaking process that involves carving into end grain hardwood, making it possible for an artist to create highly detailed images and tonally rich compositions.  Used as the primary means for printing illustrations alongside of moveable type from the late eighteenth century through most of the nineteenth century, wood engraving is still a great way to incorporate imagery into letterpress cards, book plates, printed ephemera, artist books, broadsides, and of course to develop graphic stand-alone images, especially when there is a need to work small. Students will be guided through the entire process from transferring an image, to engraving, to printing small editions. Participants will learn about types of wood used for engraving, care and sharpening of tools, and types of paper. Printing by hand as well as on a small proof press will be covered.  No previous engraving or printing experience is necessary, but patience, good eyesight, and a steady hand are very helpful!  Note:  Tuition includes a $20 lab fee.  Additionally, students should come prepared to purchase custom end grain blocks and paper directly from the instructor, approximately $15.  See materials list below.

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $615, including lab fee. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering.

Interested in learning moveable type processes?  See Letterpress Printmaking as a companion course.

Register by: July 14
Materials List 
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Monday - Friday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. 
Instructor: Tony Rosati
One-Week Intensive Course (30 Hours) 
Credit: Non-Credit or 1.0 Undergraduate Credit (See Below)

Monotypes are an expressive and accessible entry into printmaking: draw or paint an image on a Plexiglas plate or other surface and then print it on paper or fabric to create a one-of-a-kind artwork. Instruction will cover both hand-printing and press techniques, as well as water- and oil-based colors. Tuition includes a $30 lab fee.

Optional: This course is available for 1.0 undergraduate credit for $615, including lab fee. Select credit option with price adjustment when registering.

Register by: July 14
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies

Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Instructor: Keith Leitner
Weekend Workshop
Credit: Non-Credit Only

Color temperature is the perceived warmth and coolness of a color. It’s a vital tool for any artist for creating contrast and focus, establishing relationships between light and shadow, suggesting space or distance, and generating mood and meaning. This two-day course will investigate color temperature through a series of still-life exercises that will encourage experimentation, enforce understanding of color’s relative nature, and help you promote temperature effects in your work. Examples from historic and contemporary artists will be discussed. Instruction will be conducted chiefly in watercolor, but painters of all media are welcome!

See work from instructor Keith Leitner's solo exhibition at Cerulean Arts Gallery, Philadelphia, April 9 - May 4, 2025!

Image: Keith Leitner

Register by: August 1
Materials List
Summer 2025 CE Policy Guide, including withdrawal/refund policies